Tainted Sun
by Victoria Chrystallis
Summary: "I've seen your heart, and it is mine, Inoue Orihime," he said and she knew that it was true.
1. Gift

Tainted Sun

* * *

Chapter One: Gift

* * *

"Have you ever looked at your friends and know that you're the least important friend in the group…" she mumbled to Enraku "and you felt like it wouldn't make a difference if you were there or not?" The pink bear's shiny button eyes gleamed from the weak light that came off her desk lamp. Orihime puffed her cheeks and let out a long sigh. "I guess not, since I'm your only friend." Her lips curved into a small smile. She crushed the plush toy against herself and closed her eyes. He was right, of course. How could she fight alongside her friends without her powers? She would only get in their way. A liability rather than an asset… that's what she had become. It was so unfair. She'd done everything she could too, hadn't she? Orihime stared at her untouched dinner and unopened workbook. Deciding that she didn't want to eat a cold dinner, Orihime stood up and discarded what would have been her dinner to the waste bin. She flipped off the lamp and pulled her blanket over her head. Tears raced down her cheeks as she curled into a ball.

 _Someone_ _…_ _save me._

* * *

When Orihime came home from school the next day, her landlady came out to meet her. "Orihime-chan, someone left something for you," she reported with a motherly smile. "Eh… really? I wasn't expecting anyone. I'm sorry if my visitor interrupted your busy day, Hatori-san!" Orihime sputtered before bowing. "Oh no, it's quite alright dear, in fact, your visitor left you something," the old woman stepped back inside her apartment while the young girl waited, frowning. Someone had come to visit her? Who could it be? Her aunt? A relative she didn't know? The door reopened and her landlady shuffled out, holding a white paper bag with a neat mint-colored ribbon. "Here you are, Orihime-chan," the woman said as she held it out to Orihime.

She recognized the label at once. It was high-end. It couldn't have been her aunt. "Thank you, Hatori-san," she said as she received the bag, "um, may I ask if the one who gave this to you left their name? Do you remember what that person looked like?" Orihime couldn't help but notice how silky the rope handle of the bag felt. _Premium things always feel different_ , she thought. Her landlady's brows furrowed for a moment before telling her, "Well, I didn't actually get to speak with him. I only saw him through the window. But I do remember that the man was tall, had chin-length brown hair. He was pretty handsome, too! Could he be a relative of yours?" An expectant smile spread across the older woman's face. Orihime shook her head. "I don't know anyone that looks like that, I'm sorry. Are you sure that this is really for me, Hatori-san?" she murmured, gesturing at the bag.

"Your name's written on the card, so it is. The man just left it on the doorstep. Didn't even bother to knock or ring the doorbell."

This was getting stranger and stranger. "Er, alright. Thank you, Hatori-san. I'll go call my aunt and ask if she was the one who sent this. Thank you!" Orihime bolted upstairs, scowling. She fumbled with her keys for a minute as her thoughts ran wild. Who would leave a ridiculously expensive item on somebody's doorstep? Why would anyone give her anything from a famous jewelry store?

Neither of her guests was home. Orihime felt relieved that she wouldn't have to bear with their scrutiny for a while. They were probably patrolling the town. She quickly set down her school bag and groceries on the floor and placed the mysterious paper bag on the tabletop. "Should I really?" she breathed as her fingers lingered over the ribbon. To make sure that she wasn't dreaming, Orihime pinched herself and double checked the card. Her name was written there alright, in very elegant strokes.

 _Orihime Inoue._

After a moment of hesitation, she finally tugged the ribbon loose. Curiosity and apprehension swirled in her head. There was another card sitting on top of the pristine white box. With trembling fingers, Orihime reached for the card and opened it.

 _Do not believe the things you tell yourself when you are sad. Wear this and you will never feel alone. I will always be with you._

She read it again.

And again.

One more time.

Another time.

Over and over.

Surely, there was something that she was missing? The card had not been signed. The words written within the tiny card had her mind going crazy. Was someone playing an extremely extravagant and evil joke on her? Was the perpetrator going to jump out now and yell 'Gotcha!'? The stiff white paper fluttered onto the tabletop. Her mind was swimming.

 _I will always be with you._

Who would say such a thing? Orihime swallowed as her eyes shifted towards the dainty box. She ran her tongue along her upper lip then ground her teeth on her bottom lip as she continued to stare at the stark object resting on her tabletop. It sure didn't belong with her things… didn't deserve to be so carelessly placed in a teenage girl's overcrowded study table. She swallowed and let her hands hover over the lid for moment before finally lifting the elegant cover. Gently, she undid the pastel mint tissue wrapping and saw that there was another sealed box inside. "Luxury companies sure go the extra mile, huh…" she mumbled as she remove the seal and lifted the last layer. She gasped. Resting on a bed of pastel mint colored silk was the most dazzling necklace she had ever laid her eyes upon.

With bated breath, Orihime ran her fingertip along the delicate platinum chain. "Amazing," she breathed as she gingerly lifted the necklace from its silken bed. The elegant slash and the five delicate charms attached to it resembled a stem of lily of the valley. "Is this really mine?" she whispered. The whole thing was paved with tiny, glittering… could they really be? Was she really holding something paved with diamonds? Her heart sank as quickly as it had soared with glee. "There's no way…"

"Wow! That's a nice necklace, Inoue-san!" Rangiku exclaimed from behind Orihime. The young girl nearly toppled off her seat from shock. "Ma – Matsumoto-san! I didn't hear you come in!" Orihime said as she turned to face her guest. Why did she feel like she'd just been caught doing something bad? The voluptuous Shinigami waved aside her apology and made a beeline to examine the jewelry closely. "It's amazing!" she breathed before casting a curious glance at her host. Orihime gave her a tight smile. "How'd you manage to get this? I might be a stranger to human currency and stuff like that but I know that this piece here must have cost a fortune! I mean, look at those diamonds!"

Orihime's brows furrowed as she replaced the necklace on its silk bed. "To be honest, Matsumoto-san, I don't know. My landlady said that it had been left here for me," she explained. Rangiku's jubilant expression dissolved into a thoughtful one. "That's strange, don't you think, Orihime?" _Thump, thump._ Her eyes found the discarded card. "May I?" she asked, gesturing towards it. The young girl nodded. Rangiku read the note and let out a squeal. Orihime frowned. The auburn-haired Shinigami wrapped the young human girl in a tight hug before screaming, "ORIHIME HAS A RICH SE~CRET ADMIRER! YOU LUCKY BABY!"

 _Is that it? A secret admirer? Someone_ _…_ _has feelings towards me?_ Orihime blinked as Rangiku continued to smother her in an excited embrace. She was sure that the lieutenant of the 10th Division was gushing about how romantic the courtship practices of the humans were compared to theirs in Soul Society, but she couldn't bring herself to listen. Questions flooded her mind.

Who?

Who was it?

Why?

Why did he give her such a thing?

Why her?

"Well, come on, come on! Let's see how it looks on you!" Rangiku urged Orihime. She gave her guest a polite smile and struggled to undo the clasp. "Let me do it," the older woman offered. "T-thank you," Orihime mumbled as she gathered her hair onto her shoulder. She felt the pendant's slight weight when it rested against her chest.

"There. Ohh, turn around, quick! I wanna see!"

Orihime obliged.

Rangiku beamed. "It looks wonderful on you! Go on, take a look!"

It was gorgeous. Orihime stared at the glimmering pendant that rested on her chest and failed to find words. Her heart hammered in her chest. After a moment, she whispered, as her mouth curved into a gentle smile, "It's so beautiful." Rangiku placed a hand on her shoulder and said, "Well, whoever gave that to you must really have serious feelings for you! Ah! Human love gestures are just so heartwarming!"

"What's all this commotion about?" an irritated voice called out from the balcony. The two women turned and saw Toshiro standing there, with his arms crossed. "Captain! Someone sent Orihime a LOVE~LY present! Look, look!" Rangiku announced, motioning for her Captain to come closer. The platinum haired Shinigami captain looked at Orihime and nodded. "So she got a necklace. I don't see why you have to make such a fuss about it," he said as he gave his subordinate a stern look. Orihime watched them banter and touched the necklace. She wondered if it was truly alright for her to have such a beautiful thing. What had she done to deserve such a thing? She closed her eyes and smiled.

 _Thank you._

Later that night, Orihime couldn't stop staring at it. She felt warm and fuzzy just by looking at it. It was as though she had been given stars of her own.

* * *

A/N: So I reworked the entire plot of 'Tainted Sun' because I finally figured out how to deal with the loophole. I hope you enjoyed reading! If you're curious about the reference of the jewelry, I used the Chorus Valley necklace from Tasaki.


	2. Into the Woods

**Chapter Two: Into the Woods**

* * *

Tatsuki was squinting at the necklace again.

"Tatsuki," Orihime smiled as she put down her half-eaten sandwich, "what's wrong?"

It wasn't the first time her best friend gave the necklace a curious look. Tatsuki had been doing it ever since Orihime came to school wearing it. Orihime had sort of been expecting a strange reaction from her best friend… but this was definitely stronger than she had anticipated...

When Orihime came to class, the glittering necklace immediately caught everyone's eyes. Everyone was too mesmerized to speak for a few moments before Chizuru charged at Orihime. "My! What a pretty necklace! It's almost as dazzling as you, Inoue-san!" she squealed as she attempted to trap the buxom brunette in an embrace. Orihime felt a hand push her out of the embrace's trajectory. "Will you stop it already, you predator?" someone snarled from behind. Chizuru launched into yet another of her heated litanies. "Tatsuki! Something wonderful happened yesterday!" Orihime exclaimed as she turned to face her friend. Her friend's eyes widened at the sight of the shiny trinket. "Whoa," she breathed, "where'd you get that, Orihime?" Tatsuki reached for the necklace and gave it a closer look. "Glass doesn't sparkle like that…" she gasped then gaped at Orihime. "Don't tell me!?" She grinned and told the bizarre story of how the necklace had come into her possession. The girls sighed and wished they'd receive a mysterious gift as well. The boys nodded and didn't say anything but in their minds, they all thought the same thing.

 _She's exactly the type moneyed men go after._

It was then that Tatsuki's attitude towards the necklace turned sour.

"You seem to have gotten very fond of that necklace," Tatsuki said as she finished her onigiri.

A small smile crept across Orihime's face as she touched the pendant. "Yeah… I guess you're right. I only take it off when I take a bath!" She giggled then faltered when she saw her friend's surly expression.

"You don't even know who sent you that necklace, Orihime!" Tatsuki snapped. "And you said so yourself that that's a very expensive necklace! What if it's a stolen item?" Her fist tightened around the onigiri wrapper. Chizuru watched the two exchange heated looks and gulped down her soda. Orihime's beautiful eyes narrowed. She had never seen Orihime look angry before. Not even when she'd try to make a pass. "It wasn't stolen," Orihime whispered as she rose to her feet and gathered her lunch. "If it had been, it would have been on the news or something! Why can't you be happy for me?" The auburn-haired girl stormed off from the rooftop. Tatsuki yelled something, but the door's slam thundered over it.

She stopped at the top of the stairs and ground her teeth on her bottom lip. A burning sensation spread all over her like wildfire. It was wrong of her to explode on Tatsuki like that… but… somehow, didn't Tatsuki deserve it? She lifted her chin and let out a deep sigh. Couldn't she be happy about the gift, like everyone else…?

Well…

Not everyone seemed thrilled about her gift if she were to be completely honest.

There was one reaction that had disappointed her more than Tatsuki's.

Ichigo's.

Everyone in the class had been crowding around her when he walked in. "Kurosaki-kun, good morning!" she called out upon spotting him. He raised his eyes from his frown for a moment and nodded. "Good morning," he murmured before taking his seat. He hadn't noticed the glittering cluster of dainty diamonds adorning her neck. "Kurosaki-kun! Look! Some rich guy sent Inoue-san a necklace!" Keigo screamed, flailing his arms and gesturing towards her necklace. "Someone's trying to woo Orihime-san! Do you know who it is?" Ichigo turned to take another look at Orihime, who gave him a tight, awkward smile. "I don't know… that's a nice necklace, Inoue-san."

Her face fell. She had been expecting him to at least be curious about the extravagant gift she'd received. Orihime's hands curled into fists as she stared down at her feet. _What were you expecting him to do, Orihime?_ she admonished herself. _Get mad? Feel jealous? He's got more important things to think about!_ She shook her head and shrugged his nonchalance aside.

Orihime pressed her lips together and made her way down the stairwell, only to stumble to a stop at the landing.

They were standing there, inside an empty classroom. Rukia was staring up at him with fierce eyes. Ichigo was staring down at her, with his hair obscuring his eyes. Her mouth was moving at a furious pace, while his remained pressed to a thin line. Rukia's mouth stopped moving. Orihime waited for Ichigo's response. She watched him raise his hand to cradle Rukia's face. Orihime swallowed and held her breath. Ichigo lowered his head and pressed his lips to Rukia's. The petite woman seemed to melt as their kiss deepened. Orihime squeezed her eyes shut and held the necklace as she willed her feet to move, to run away from the scene. Her heart raced in her chest as she sped down the stairs with tears streaming down her face.

Her classmates stared at her the moment she burst into the room. "Inoue-san? Are you alright?" they asked. Orihime avoided her classmates' curious looks. The lunch items landed harder in the bin than she had intended. Her face was crumpling, and she didn't want them to see. Orihime buried her face in her arms and refused to let anyone pry her arms open. Halfway through their afternoon session, she fainted.

"Orihime!" Tatsuki yelled as she made her way out of the campus. "Hey! Come on, can we please talk?" Orihime paused and turned to give Tatsuki a shaky smile. "I… want to be alone right now, Tatsuki. Let's talk tomorrow." Her friend grabbed her by the arm. "At least let me walk you home. You're not well!" The resolution in Tatsuki's eyes told Orihime that she wouldn't be able to shake her friend off, so she nodded.

The walk home was… awkward. It was obvious that Tatsuki was doing her best to keep quiet. But as they neared Orihime's apartment, Tatsuki finally reached her limit. "Orihime, listen. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said those things," she blurted out. Orihime's taut mouth loosened into a smile. "It's alright. I'm not mad…" she said. Her friend studied her face for a second. "But you're still upset." Orihime cast her eyes down at the concrete and pressed her lips together. "What's wrong, Ori? You can tell me," her friend coaxed. She gulped and sucked in a deep breath. "It's nothing, Tatsuki! I'm just feeling a little tired today." Orihime grimaced. A biker sped by them, so fast that Orihime's hair flew in his wake, that their skirts fluttered slightly. Tatsuki studied her friend's pale face and sighed. "You better eat a healthy dinner, alright?" the short-haired girl said. "Yeah, I will. Thanks for walking me home…!" Orihime felt her friend wrap her in a tight embrace. "I'm always here, Ori."

Orihime closed her eyes and rested her troubled head on her friend's shoulder. They stayed like that for a while. They weren't sure how long exactly. Time had a funny way of making a moment feel like an eternity sometimes. When they finally extricated themselves from the hug, a gentle smile was on Orihime's face. "Make sure you eat healthy, alright?" Tatsuki reminded her as Orihime crossed the road. She waved at her friend. Tatsuki stuck around to make sure that her friend got inside the apartment building alright. Her coach was going to punish her for being late, for sure. But it didn't matter much, for once.

She sat on the balcony after dinner and stared at the crescent moon that loomed over Karakura Town. A soft sigh spirited itself out of her lips. It was so quiet that she could hear every word the passing man was saying to his phone as he hurried along the sidewalk. Karakura Town was blazing with a thousand twinkling lights. She leaned on the railing and felt the cool nighttime breeze kiss her exposed skin. "Ah, I wish I had a reason to be in town tonight," she murmured. Out in town… other people were making the most of what remained of their day, living it up. And she felt a pang of jealousy towards these faceless, nameless night owls. Somewhere out there, couples were walking hand in hand, laughing, dining together. Meanwhile, she stood on her balcony after eating dinner alone. Her phone didn't ring once. The corners of her mouth twisted into a grimace and backed away from the balcony. Her apartment swam in darkness after she pulled the drapes. "It's getting late anyway," she said under her breath.

Sleep wouldn't rescue her.

She couldn't keep her eyes closed.

Because every time she did, she'd see them.

Ichigo.

Rukia.

His hand, reaching out to her…

Her wide, apprehensive eyes…

Their lips, meeting…

Orihime grimaced. There was a bitter taste in her mouth. She covered her eyes with her arm and heaved deep breaths in an attempt to calm herself down. But it wouldn't work. Her face crumpled and tears streamed down her face as she curled herself into a ball.

* * *

She found herself lying in a sunlit meadow. A gust of wind blew by. The nearby trees rustled against one another. The delicate stems swayed the wildflower blossoms back and forth. Orihime closed her eyes and smiled as she turned her face towards the sky. She basked in the warmth and breathed in the sweet faint scents of the earth. The grass shoots felt like satin ribbons against her skin. Nothing seemed to matter. Clouds drifted overhead; expanding and unfurling with slow succession. A butterfly fluttered above her and Orihime reached towards it. She let out a squeal when the delicate creature landed on her outstretched finger. Its wings were orange with black outlines and spattered with tiny splotches of white. She watched it fold and unfold its wings and move about the length of her finger. It stayed for a few more moments before it glided back up in the air again. Orihime sat up and watched it glide then ultimately settle upon a dancing blossom. When she stood up, she felt light as a feather. Her dress swirled fluidly around her legs as she moved. The wildflowers parted and bowed as she passed. Their petals were smooth to the touch. A graceful kaleidoscope of butterflies rose from the disturbed flowers.

Then, it grew dark.

A gust of cold wind blew by, making her dress and hair whip about all over her face. The butterflies disappeared together with the wind by the time she looked up again. Great gray clouds had taken over the clear blue sky, promising rain.

Fine silvery mist rose in swirls. It licked every leaf, tumbled upon petals. It coiled itself round every branch and trunk that stood in its way. The mist thickened as it continued to advance towards her. It seemed to swallow everything that it touched – the vapors seemed to leech the colors of the flowers and leaves and turn them stony gray. Everything disappeared behind the mist's veil. She stood and watched with awe as the elegant curls of vapor unfurled before her.

" _Inoue Orihime."_

She jumped and searched for the owner of the disembodied voice but she couldn't see anything. The world had been thoroughly blanched. "Who… who's there?" she called out.

" _I have seen your heart, Inoue Orihime,"_ the silvery voice whispered. And then the mist began to move around her. It started out slow but it began to gain speed. She felt like she was smack right in the middle of a hurricane's eye. Her dress whipped around and her hair pelted against her face like fine whips. It was getting harder and harder to remain upright. _"I have seen the depths of your heart, and it is mine. Your desires, your fears, and the darkness you try to quell. I have seen them all, and they are mine."_

The furious wind current knocked her down and Orihime cowered to shield her face from its brutal lashing. "Stop this!" she cried as she flattened her shaking hands over her ears.

" _Unloved, rejected by parents who never wanted another child… Least loved now, by the boy who prefers another… Abandoned yet again, by comrades who see you as nothing but a burden… Always second-best, never anyone's first choice…"_ the disembodied voice continued.

"No! Stop talking! Go away!" she screamed.

And the flurry of wind did.

Orihime stared at the dampened ground and heaved deep breaths. She lifted her hands off from her ears and heard nothing. Her ears rang from the silence. A moment passed before she raised her head to find the mist forming into two giant clumps. A shrill scream burst from her lungs as she watched the great clumps turn into two figures. Her limbs felt wooden as she backed away from the grotesque figures. First to appear were their heads, faceless and weirdly distorted. Then their chests… then arms… then waists… then legs… One of them was taller than the other while the shorter one was more slender. Then she recognized the figures. Pain shot through her. Ichigo and Rukia were standing side by side in front of her. Apparition-Ichigo was godlike, as he regarded her with blank eyes. Apparition-Rukia was even more ethereal in her snowy perfection.

" _How could I ever love someone as weak and useless as you?"_ Apparition-Ichigo said, entwining his fingers with Apparition-Rukia's delicate ones. _"Why would I want someone like you when I can have someone like Rukia?"_

Orihime's heart forgot how to beat for a moment. She remained slumped, gazing, mesmerized, at the finely imitated faces of her friends.

" _How could I ever fall for an idiot like you, Inoue? Always stumbling, stuttering, falling behind… it's such a bother! You're such a bother!"_ Apparition-Ichigo whined. His pale mouth twisted into a smirk. _"To be quite honest, we were all happy that you were gone from the group! We're happier… better off without you! We all laughed at your stupidity... at your presumption that –"_

" _Presumption!"_ echoed Apparition-Rukia, who was even more beautiful in her snow white perfection, and yet more terrible than the real Rukia. Orihime couldn't quite put her finger at it: these two figures were like her friends' reflections… only made with mist, but there was something quite sinister about them. Apparition-Rukia cackled and reached out for Apparition-Ichigo's hand. Their vapory fingers merged and became a single knot of silvery mist. _"Why would we want you? You could never fight by our side! You don't deserve to stand beside Ichigo…or with anyone at all! You're just a weak girl without your weapon! You're worthless without it! What are you, compared to me? I am of noble blood and have powers beyond your comprehension! I awakened Ichigo's resting Shinigami powers! What have you ever done for him?"_

"I…" Orihime breathed as she gazed up at the linked figures. "I healed him…" she whispered as her fists tightened into fists. The apparitions cackled. _"Healed me?"_ Apparition-Ichigo laughed, shaking his head. _"You owed me that much, didn't you? After all, you were the reason I'd get hurt in the first place! Who would love you? What man would take you? You are nothing, nothing, nothing!"_

Apparition-Rukia laughed and stretched like a snake then wrapped herself around Apparition-Ichigo in a lover's embrace. Apparition-Ichigo smiled down at the misty reflection of Rukia. Their lips met.

She woke up with tears in her eyes.

Rangiku was kneeling beside her, her beautiful face twisted with concern. "Are you alright, Inoue-san?" she asked softly. "Did you have a nightmare?" The older woman gently wiped the tears from the girl's cheeks.

Orihime felt cold, despite her warm pajamas. She pulled herself up to a sitting position and hugged her knees. "Yeah…" she mumbled. The Shinigami woman got up to fetch a glass of water for her. Orihime reached for her necklace and held it in her hand. Slowly but surely, she stopped shaking.

"Wanna talk about it?"

Silence blanketed their dark apartment until Orihime finally turned to face the concerned woman.

"I'm alright now," Orihime said with a placid smile. "It was just a bad dream…"

* * *

The corners of his mouth tilted upwards as he heard his friend's nearly inaudible footsteps.

"You're in a good mood," his platinum-haired commander noted. "I wonder why."

He faced his comrade and allowed the necklace to dangle before him.

"Ah," Gin said, nodding.

" _They_ didn't even recognize it," Sosuke laughed as the necklace with his former squad's insignia disappeared once more into his robes.

* * *

 **A/N:** I'm sorry this update took so long! I had to undergo a major operation and rest for a while – but at least I was able to put the time to good use: working on this fic's plot. I'd love to know your thoughts about how the story's progressing so far – let me know through reviewing! Also, since I've fully recovered, I'll be going back to work soon, so updates might get stilted so please bear with me. I would also like to thank those who read the first chapter and left me reviews/subscribed/added the story to their favorites! You guys are awesome!

Thank you for reading this update! Don't forget to show me some love in the review section!


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